News

Graham Matthews, Melbourne A Victorian government survey of 2003 year 12 graduates has confirmed that less than 34% of students from public schools entered university, compared with 67% of students from private schools, which are being increasingly

3 Muslims protest Iraq war SYDNEY — Chanting "Down, down Washington!" in English and "America go to hell!" in Arabic, 400 Muslims marched down the main road of the western Sydney suburb of Auburn to the local park on April 11. Speakers at

Terry Costello, Melbourne At a Your Rights at Work forum on October 17, Community and Public Sector Union assistant national secretaries Margaret Gillespie and Stephen Jones signaled their intention not to mobilise members against the federal

Chris Williams Outside cinemas around the country, a new "parliament of the streets" is developing as people discuss and debate Michael Moore's new film, Fahrenheit 9/11. Cinemas have been packed out by people attending previews of what is fast

Kamala Emanuel, Hobart Tasmania's Labor government continues to feel public anger at its decision to support a private hospital downgrading services in violation of its contract with the government. At least 2000 people attended an open-air meeting

Kathy Newnam, Darwin On July 26, the Northern Territory Supreme Court will hear a case against Margot Laughton, who has been charged under the NT's repressive "drug house" laws. Under the laws, introduced by the NT's Labor government in 2002, a

During a February 24 "doorstop interview" in Ballarat about federal treasurer Peter Costello's demand for greater Australian patriotism from Muslims and others, federal Labor leader Kim Beazley commented: "If somebody has a revolutionary view, I

Feeling Bolshie "A [Russian] leader writer has expressed concern that the Soviet Union still exists, that nostalgia for it seems to be the dominant mode. Polls by reputable institutes confirm this: 57% of Russians want the USSR back (2001); 45%

Unemployment benefits, that is "Capitalism generates fantastic wealth, and the benefits accrue almost entirely to the least of these among us." — Art Carden, in a March 8 article "Why they hate the market", written for the web site of the

Bob Elliston, Hobart A five-year campaign to save part of historic Recherche Bay, in south-east Tasmania, has been won, with all parties involved having achieved a satisfactory resolution. The agreement was announced on February 8 by Labor Premier

Sue Bull, Melbourne Thousands of Victorian teachers took to the streets of Melbourne on March 3, in protest at stalled negotiations with the state Labor government over their pay and conditions campaigns. It was an historic day of unity as 12,000

Sarah Stephen, Sydney On January 31, 47-year-old former Afghan diplomat Naqib Ahmed Noori was released from Villawood detention centre after six years and four months of imprisonment. Noori, a former member of the People's Democratic Party of